Six Ways
by Leyoht
Summary: Something strange is happening in Ponyville. Lyra has gone missing, leading Bonbon to search Equestria for her best friend. From under her bed, Fluttershy finds a stone-the likes of which wants nothing but everypony's total submission to paranoia. But when one thing happens in one world, something of equal significance must happen in its sister world.
1. Nuva Stones and the Great Cataclysm

Another calm, peaceful day. Not a single cloud showed in the light blue sky; the weather pony was doing a good job. Everypony enjoyed and admired the work she and her weather patrol did. With their efforts, never once had Ponyville shriveled up from cold—and never once had it melted from heat. Regardless of how lazy she could sometimes be, Rainbow Dash deserved all the praise she received.

Another fun day—a day filled to the brim with excitement and adventure. Not a dull, laughterless moment ticked or tocked on their clocks. It was all thanks to Pinkie Pie.

Rarity kept everybody looking—as she would say—_fabulous_.

Applejack kept everyone well-fed.

Fluttershy never left a poor, fluffy soul behind.

And Twilight Sparkle had saved Ponyville and Equestria countless times since the day she first set eyes on Ponyville.

Trying hard to keep herself from getting distracted, Twilight pulled her eyes away from her window—from the clear, blue sky. _I have to finish this book!_ She stood only two pages away from learning how to set objects ablaze in fire. She felt as if she'd been stuck on the same page for two hours now.

_Darn it, Rainbow Dash!_ she cursed. It was the one day her pegasus friend decided not to take a snooze on a cloud—as opposed to actually moving them out of the sun's way. It was as if Rainbow Dash had actually listened to her instructors for a change.

Twilight snorted at such a thought. She would sooner believe in Pinkie Pie's superstitious body twitches. But then again—one of them did make a piano fall on her head.

"Gah!" cried Twilight, squeezing her head between her hooves. "Focus!"

This thought echoing in her head, the violet unicorn pursed her lips and stuck her nose in the book.

If one wishes to acquire better access to fire, he or she must find the ancient Nuva stone of fire.

_Nuva stone?_ wondered Twilight, digressing from her reading. _What else does it say?_

The whereabouts of the Nuva stone have remained a secret ever since the Great Cataclysm.

Wanting to know more, Twilight turned the last page. She expected an answer as to just what this _Great Cataclysm _was, but all she found were two paragraphs of circle-shaped letters—the likes of which clearly derived from a foreign language.

_Is that it?_ wondered Twilight. A few more page flips confirmed her question.

Heaving forth a sigh, she brought the book to a close. It was then when she telekinetically set it back in its original spot within her ever-expanding library. After Celestia's top student put the book back in its proper hole, she looked back at her desk and rolled out a piece of parchment.

With the tip of her quill now heavily coated in ink, she began writing.

_Dear Princess Celestia,_

_I have just finished reading _Ablaze In Fire, Not Fear. _Thanks again for giving it to me! I honestly thought it was very informative—yet enchanting at the same time._

_The only thing about it that bothered me was the ending. In the end, the book mentions something about_ Nuva stones _and a _Great Cataclysm. _The last page is written in a foreign language._

_I wanted to ask—do you know anything about what the end of this book is talking about?_

_Your faithful student,_

_Twilight Sparkle_

"Spike!" she called out while magically wrapping the parchment into a scroll.

From the top floor of the tree house, Spike gave a twitch of his ears at the sound of Twilight's voice. Taking no time to hesitate, the young dragon rushed down the stairs, not caring if he tripped on his way or not.

He had already used almost all his breath when he smiled, saluted, and said, "Your Number One Assistant Spike here!"

"Here," began Twilight. "Send this message to Princess Celestia."

"Can do!" And with those two words, Spike took a deep breath. Before Twilight could blink, he let a lick of green fire seep over the scroll in his hands. He and Twilight watched as the flame and ash retreated to Celestia through the nearest window.


	2. Party in the Apples

"Ding-dong!"

Flinching in surprise, Twilight switched her gaze to the front door. "I don't have a doorbell," she murmured to herself as she came up to the door. Using her magic, Twilight let the door fling right open. In its place was Pinkie Pie—who bounced up and down like a filly on a trampoline.

A warm smile appeared upon the purple pony's face when she exclaimed, "Oh, hi Pinkie! What are you doing here?"

"I'm just here to tag along with you and AJ. Wouldn't wanna miss out!"

"Speakin' of which," an accented voice called from behind.

Her ears vibrating with the sound of this voice, Pinkie Pie moved to her left, revealing their friend, Applejack. The freckle-faced pony didn't look too good; she didn't even smile!

"Oh good!" said Twilight, "I was just about to head over to your house."

Applejack tipped her hat in response to those words, yet still made no effort to smile.

Taking a look back at her dragon, Twilight asked, "Are you ready, Spike?"

"You bet I am!" Not taking a single moment to hesitate, Spike leapt upon her back.

Feeling as Spike's rough scales scraped along her flank, Twilight turned around—facing the inside of her house—and shouted. "See you in a bit, Owlicious!"

"Hoo," the owl responded.

After shutting the door, Twilight listened when Applejack announced, "All right; ya'll just follow me." And off they went, keeping close behind Applejack all the while.

Twilight carried Spike as Pinkie Pie sang, "Laa-la-laa-la-laaaa!" while bouncing on her hooves. Twilight, Spike, and Applejack could practically hear the spring beneath her feet.

"So—Applejack," Twilight began, "What exactly was it you wanted me to burn down?"

Without even turning to meet Twilight's gaze, Applejack responded, "We got some rotten apples me and Big Mac wanted you to burn down. We're running out of room for seeds and the dang things just smell awful! We got enough things to worry about what with the Equestria farmers' market comin' up and all."

"Well," chuckled Twilight. "Good for you I just finished the book on spawning fire—so I think it'll be all right." She sighed. "I've just never actually tried this before."

At that moment, Pinkie Pie started snickering mid-bounce. Perplexed at her laughter, Twilight—without looking back—wondered, "What's so funny?"

At that moment, Pinkie Pie flinched, bringing herself to a stop. Twilight's words had caused her cheeks to blush an even darker shade of pink than usual.

The boinging sound of her friend's hopping came to a halt, making the unicorn stop and turn around to her pink friend.

Sweat rolled down Pinkie Pie's face as she showed the biggest smile Twilight had ever seen.

"I'm not mad," Twilight explained, "I just want to know what's up."

"And I wanna know what's the holdup!" a frustrated Applejack shouted from behind.

Shaken by the pony's sudden anger, Twilight and Pinkie Pie turned in Applejack's direction and continued walking.

"What's the deal with her?" Spike whispered into Twilight's ear.

"I'm not sure," Twilight responded with a whisper of her own, "Did she not get enough sleep last night?" Just by looking at Applejack, she could tell something was wrong. The undersides of her eyes were purple; Twilight could just see the earth pony's face burning with sleepiness.

What they didn't know was that Applejack had spent the past three nights breathing in the horrid stench of rotting apples. Every night she would inhale their fumes—unable to ignore the odor they threw upon her. Applebloom, Big Macintosh, and Granny Smith felt the very same way.

After passing through the town square and over the grassy hills surrounding Ponyville, the three ponies and Spike caught sight of Applejack's home. Just a few minutes' time was all it took to go from small-town Ponyville to beautiful Sweet Apple Acres.

Immediately apparent was the Acres' stench. _Applejack was right!_ thought Twilight, resisting the urge to gag. _It smells repulsive here! And this is being caused by apples?_ Usually she loved the smell of apples—especially when they were freshly picked and clustered into a bucket. She couldn't imagine, couldn't fathom a living creature coming anywhere near the foul air. Twilight literally had to cover her nose with a hoof just to keep herself from vomiting.

How Pinkie Pie still kept a smile on her face was anybody's guess. Pinkie Pie was just being Pinkie Pie—at least that was the only answer Twilight could come up with.

After breathing through her mouth for what felt like an hour, Twilight caught sight of the pile of apples. There was no doubt: those apples were filled with worms.

"Alrighty then," Applejack coughed. "See if you can burn this down." For the first time that day, the orange pony placed a smile on her face—a smile of intimidation.

"You're on." Seeing Applejack's remark as a challenge, Twilight marched over to the rank fruits. Her nostrils stained with their odor, she took a step forward and searched her mind for the proper technique. _What did the book tell me to do? Oh yeah!_

Growing purple, her horn started working its magic. Within heartbeats, the tip of her horn started growing hot. _I'm getting somewhere_, Twilight thought, _but I can't continue to keep my horn on fire._

In slight desperation and panic, she thought, _Maybe it'll work if I count to three. Yeah—that should make it work!_ Keeping the thought in mind, she counted, _One…two…three._All the while she felt as the intensity upon her horn only grew fiercer and fiercer. _Now!_

In a show of flame and magic, she released all her horn's energy. Just a little fireballs shot out of her horn—and while it didn't look like much, it became the start of a mission accomplished. She had almost forgotten about Spike—who sat upon her still when he congratulated, "Great job, Twilight!"

Sweat rolling down her face, she watched as flame gradually seeped over all the apples. It was intriguing to see how the faded skin melted when exposed to such devastating temperatures. While proud of herself, Twilight couldn't help but feel slightly uneasy.

Although it had taken the ponies a while to notice, the ground started to shake.

Just as quick as it had come, the shaking ceased. "What in tarnation?" asked Applejack, scratching her head.

As Applejack stood in utter confusion, Pinkie Pie placed an excited smile on her face. "It's coming!" the pink pony cried in excitement, giving a little hop.

In both confusion and anger, Twilight shot a look back at Pinkie Pie when she asked, "What on Equestria are you—?" Without any warning, the ground gave another great shake.

"It's gonna blow!" chirped Pinkie.

"What?" Twilight shrieked. Not taking a single moment to hesitate, she leapt out of the way—her rump pointed toward the burning apples—and shielded her eyes. Spike did the same. Only a heartbeat passed before the sound of fireworks blasted in their ears.

Both bewildered and surprised, Twilight cautiously took a look over her shoulder. The apples had all but disappeared; in their place stood an army of sleeping fireworks—the likes of which quickly shrunk.

Exploding in the sky was a vibrant array of colors. Blues, purples, pinks, and reds came together in a fiery outburst. After maybe half a minute had come to pass, the fireworks stopped—just for a split-second—before one giant pink firework exploded into a formation of Pinkie Pie's smiling face.

"Yay! It worked!" cried the victorious Pinkie Pie.

Applejack rubbed her eyes, wondering if they were dying. After confirming what she had just witnessed was real, she shot a kind, yet tired look at Twilight when she murmured, "Twi—thanks a bunch for clearin' up all those apples."

Her face slightly sterner than before, she turned toward Pinkie Pie and continued, "And Pinkie—what in the name of all things red and delicious did you do?"

Pinkie Pie snorted. "Well—when I heard Twilight was going to be learning about how to make fire, I decided I would set some fireworks in your apples. So then when Twilight set the apples on fire, you would both get to see my face—but all fireworky! All Twilight had to do was light up the apples and—ta-da!—fireworks away!" Pinkie Pie stood on her hind legs as she uttered those last few words.

She flicked her gaze toward Twilight and Spike when she concluded with a wink, "It's all thanks to you!"

Unsure how to respond, Twilight stammered, "Uh—s-sure thing!" At the same time, the quivering Spike said, "Don't mention it!"

Her nose wrinkling and her eyes squinting, Pinkie Pie looked over Twilight's head and wondered, "What's that?"

"What's what?" asked Twilight, turning her head. She gasped at the sight before her.

In place of the apples and fireworks stood a dark, jagged stone. A dark essence seemed to emanate from the little rock—causing a sense of dread to envelop Twilight's mind. _Wh-what is that? _she thought, briefly witnessing all the horrors of her life story flashing before her eyes. _What is it doing?_ Twilight pushed those thoughts out of her head and—itching to find out what this strange artifact was—sauntered up to it.

Understanding how Twilight felt, Spike looked at the stone in fear. "Twilight, wait!" called Spike from behind. Despite his sympathy toward his pony friend, he knew there was no way he could possibly bring himself closer to the stone. Instead of helping Twilight, he merely cowered away from the face of danger. _Please—_ he silently begged. _I don't want to lose you._

As Twilight came closer, she noticed a horrific smile and a pair of slanted eyes carved upon the black stone. "Hello?" she asked, wondering if this stone was alive or not.

"Twilight!" a soft voice cried from the distance.

Flinching at the sounds of such a whispery voice, Twilight took her eyes off the rock and caught sight of her friend: Fluttershy.

Turning her head over her shoulder, the yellow pony called out, "I found it!" At that moment, Rarity came poking out from under a hill, a blue glow shining off her horn.

In the clouds flew Rainbow Dash—who had just paused mid-flight to see what the commotion was all about. "Did you find it?" she called from the sky.

"Yes," murmured Fluttershy, a smile on her face. It was then when Fluttershy happily trotted over to the dark stone. Not a worry, care, or dreadful thought seemed to cross her mind—at least her face didn't show any trace of such thoughts.

Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Twilight, and Spike were all but dumbstruck. Fluttershy wasn't a brave pony; she would shy away from Twilight if she felt the unicorn's magic had the power to hurt somepony. And here she was—of all ponies—trotting toward the dread-invoking stone.

The glow upon Rarity's horn vanished when she caught sight of the stone. Releasing a gasp, the white unicorn asked, "_That _is what you have been looking for this whole time? That horrid thing? You told me you were looking for a treasure—a gem, if you will—but no! You dragged me with you just so we could find—_that_?" Like Applejack, Rarity had bags under her eyes. Had she been awake all night, as well?

Not even sensing the anger in Rarity's voice, Fluttershy gave a quick nod.

As Fluttershy neared the black rock, Rainbow Dash gradually floated down to the ground. "Where is it?" she asked, hooves touching the ground as she turned her head here and there.

"There it is," scoffed Rarity, not even looking at the stone. "It's simply awful!"

Upon scanning her eye over the rock, Rainbow Dash started feeling a strange depression clambering over her thoughts. _What's going on?_ she wondered, sweat rolling down her cheek. _It's just a little rock—right? How much harm could that do?_

In the midst of her thoughts, the fearless pegasus heard as a deep voice growled, _Rainbow Dash—join me! Be part of my power!_

The simple utterance of these words caused a shiver to crawl down her spine. After swallowing her fears, she took a step forward when she stammered, "I-it's just a little stone. How much h-harm could it p-possibly—?"

She found herself at a loss for words. Tears started forming in her eye ducts. _Don't cry, you pansy!_ she shouted at herself. Now she had two options: either weep in front of her friends or run away and scream. She decided to take the second option.

The five ponies and Spike watched as the bravest of the bunch fled the scene. Her screams echoed in their ears, making the majority of them cringe and ask themselves, _What did it do? _Fluttershy instead frowned and thought, _Why do they have to treat him like that?_

But Fluttershy didn't care what anybody thought; she would take her stone back to her home—where she would show pride and faith in it. As her friend stood, mesmerized by the very sight of the rock, a confused Twilight wondered, "Fluttershy?"

"Yes?" the pegasus responded, not even looking back in Twilight's direction.

"Where did you find that?"

"Well," began Fluttershy, "When I woke up yesterday morning, I felt something sitting under my pillow. I picked it up and felt like I had known this little thing my whole life—like I had just found my hiding brother."

She sighed before continuing, "Every time I get near it, I feel protected."

"Protected?" snorted Rarity, flabbergasted at such a use of the word.

"That's odd, cause whenever I get near that thing," Twilight admitted, "I feel horrible. I don't feel like I just found my brother; I feel like somebody forced me to—well—kill my brother." A pause slipped into place before she realized, "And besides, Fluttershy—if you really woke up with this thing sleeping under your pillow, then why did it end up under the rotting apples and fireworks?"

"Beg your pardon?" asked Fluttershy, an ear twitching.

"That's what I asked her," sighed Rarity. "She just won't listen to reason."

"Hmm," murmured Twilight, trying to think of somebody she could contact to help Fluttershy. Did she need help at all? Were the others merely overreacting?

Maybe Princess Celestia knew something about Fluttershy's ignorant state. Twilight could only hope.

It was while thinking those thoughts over when Twilight heard her assistant's stomach grumble. A little more grumbling caused him to let out a loud burp—and bring with it a letter from the princess herself. Knowing this, Twilight grabbed the scroll before it could touch the ground, opened it up, and glued her eyes to its front.

_Dear Twilight,_

_I might know something about those symbols you were talking about. Meet me at the castle this Wednesday so I can see it._

_Your mentor,_

_Princess Celestia_

_That's it? _thought Twilight. _Usually the princess writes a lot more than this! _But even with that thought in mind, she let a shrug roll over her shoulders.

"What does it say?" wondered Rarity.

"Oh, nothing important."


	3. An Unfulfilled Prophecy

"Here they come!" called the captain of the Ta-Koro guard. "Load your disks! Consider this your final training course."

An army of Ta-Matoran readied their throwing arms for the approaching enemies. The shadow before them only approached closer and closer, bringing with it the horrid notion of defeat. Every Matoran there felt like retreating—but was that what Jaller had told them to do? Were they to simply run away when the going got tough?

After years of hiding beneath the Makuta's cloak, a horde of Nui Rama came flying toward Ta-Koro. Their masks—the likes of which had been blackened from Makuta's grime—and their buzzing cry encapsulated the Matoran in fear. Nothing was worse than listening to the Nui-Ramas' buzz. It was like being surrounded by bees—only these creatures were a hundred times bigger and a hundred times deadlier.

"Fire at will!" cried Jaller.

And so it was done. Disks of many origins came flying out from the Matorans' arms and toward the rahi beasts before them. Some made their target—leaving rahi spiraling to their doom. Others missed—only to have the few Matoran who missed feeling self-disappointment.

Jaller pulled out one disk of his own, admiring its texture, reminiscing about the disk itself before cradling it within his arm. _I have had this since I first became captain, _he realized, digressing from the fight. On its front was a picture of his mask: the Kanohi Hau. For decades had it shielded him from all rahi threats. Even now when the beasts seemed to act stronger and fiercer than ever before, his disk prevented Death's hand from taking a hold of him.

Now ready for battle, Jaller took a step forward and prepared to spin himself like a discus thrower—only to find himself entranced by the sight of six little lights out in the distance. He almost gasped at such a sight; he stopped spinning and took a look up at the purple dusk sky just to get better understanding of what was going on.

Sandwiched between two puffy clusters of clouds was a group of twinkling spirit stars—one for each Toa. Every star shined in his eyes with a spark of hope—the kind of hope which assured him safety for many years to come. _We are coming, _this hope seemed to tell him.

Before Jaller had a chance to respond, the stars spat out six canisters toward the ocean.

"_Bzz_!" cried a Nui-Rama. Nearly knocking him off his feet, the insect grabbed a hold of Jaller's shoulders and attempted to take him up into the sky.

Thankfully for Jaller, his guard was around to help him—to knock this creature away. In doing so, they drove the rahi beast away—leaving Jaller to lie on the ground. "Captain!" a Ta-Matoran guard called. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," Jaller confirmed while picking himself up. "I'm alright."

At that moment, a miracle happened. All the swarming Nui-Rama stopped attacking—as if frozen by an invisible force—and started fleeing away from the Matoran. Each and every last one of those still alive flew away in the same formation in which they had first appeared.

_What did we do?_ Jaller wondered, amazed by the sight of retreating rahi beasts.

"What happened, Captain?" It was Kapura: the slowest of the guard.

Still distraught by what he had just witnessed, the captain of the guard released a sigh before responding, "Nothing. It's alright."

"Looks like we've won, Captain," assured Kapura. "What should we do?"

Jaller pondered on those words for a moment. What was he to do? What was it he had told Vakama earlier? "Oh yeah!" he remembered. "I'll tell you once we've dispersed."

At that moment, Jaller walked past Kapura and over toward the other Ta-Matoran—many of whom hadn't a clue what was going on. Clapping his hands, Jaller cried to his army, "Guard! Ten-hut!" With those words, Jaller stopped the entire guard. Every single one of them looked up at their leader, keeping their eyes focused on Jaller.

Now with their attention, Jaller called out to them, "Great job today, guard! We have fought well—and won!"

"Thank you, Captain!" the cried in unison.

"Fall out!" commanded Jaller—and the Ta-Matoran did as they were told. Before the Matoran could have made a considerable amount of progress, Jaller grabbed a hold of three members of his guard, startling them all as a result. Among the Matoran was Kapura.

"What is it, Captain?" one of them asked.

A somewhat mischievous smile on his face, Jaller answered, "Meet me at my hut at dawn. I have a task for all of you."

And with that, Jaller tightened his grip and left each of the confronted Matoran alone. Said Matoran exchanged nervous glances with each other.

"Captain?" wondered Kapura, coming in last as usual. Nobody was in the hut. The only thing in the hut catching his interest was a map of Ta-Koro—the likes of which had a number of markers placed upon it. "Captain?" he repeated. _Am I late?_

Nearly scaring the flames out of him, a whispery voice called his voice from behind. "Kapura!"

Flinching, the slow guard turned around and caught sight of his captain. As Jaller stood beneath the entrance, he continued, "We're going to gather around the Mangai flame."

_The Mangai Flame?_ wondered Kapura. _He called us all over just so we could look at a fire?_ The thought both angered and confused him.

Unsure how he should have responded, he let out a sigh before murmuring, "Okay." With that one word, he walked past Jaller and toward the Mangai flame—where at least a hundred other Matoran surrounded Turaga Vakama.

The sheer brightness and orange color of the flame made Kapura proud to be a Ta-Matoran. Onu-Koro may have had a twinkling lightstone mine; Ko-Koro may have had skyscraping mountains; but Ta-Koro had the heat of the Great Mangai as a symbol of their village's pride.

His staff shining as powerfully as the flame sitting behind him, Vakama witnessed as the last of the Ta-Matoran—which of course, was Kapura—took his seat and locked his eyes on the village elder. Seeing as the whole village gathered around him, Vakama gave a bow and sat down, as well.

As the flame came inches from burning the back of his head, he cleared his throat and began:

"Gathered friends—listen again to our legend of the Bionicle. In the time before time, the Great Spirit descended from the heavens, gathering we—the ones called the Matoran—to this paradise. We were separate and without purpose. So the Great Spirit illuminated us with the three virtues: unity, duty, and destiny. We embraced these gifts—and in gratitude, we named our island home Mata Nui: after the Great Spirit himself."

"But our happiness was not to last. Mata Nui's brother, the Makuta, was jealous of these honors and betrayed him—casting a spell over Mata Nui, who soon fell into a deep slumber. The Makuta was free to unleash his shadows. And unleash them he did."

A round of applause surrounded the Turaga as those last words mixed in with the blissful sound of fire cracking wood. Almost every one of his words pierced the Matorans' hearts with hope and despair. Their only hope rested in the Toa's hands—but hope was fragile.


	4. Hunting

"Okay, today we're going to go hunting," explained Jaller.

"Hunting for what, Captain?"

"Rahi."

The other three Matoran were perplexed. "Just rahi?" one of them asked. "No rahi in particular?"

"Nope! Just pick up some weapons and get going."

_Is that it?_ wondered Kapura. _He's just going to drag us to hunt for ordinary rahi?_ He could have just done that on his own; Jaller just _had_ to have some kind of trick up his sleeve.

"Captain," Kapura sighed, "Just tell me. What are we looking for?" He was on the verge of snapping now—as was Jaller.

"We are _not_ searching for anything special."

Both fire-spitters came face-to-face with each other before the other two Matoran shouted in unison, "Hey! Stop fighting!"

Startled, Jaller and Kapura froze and turned toward the only calm Matoran in the hut. A moment of silence followed.

"Okay," sighed Jaller, pulling himself away from Kapura. "Let's just get going on our way." With those words, he grabbed his trident and exited the hut.

Feeling as the fresh outside heat conducted against the protodermis within his mask, Jaller took his first step outside his home—and immediately turned toward the two guards standing outside the massive hut.

"Remain vigilant until we return," he commanded. Without even looking their captain in the eye, the two guards saluted their leader. Upon assuring the guards' loyalty and cooperation, Jaller sauntered off to the Ta-Koro bridge.

Rays of red and orange essence surrounded the four Ta-Matoran, enveloping them in its heated spirit. The village of Ta-Koro sat behind them as they continued scaling the rocky bridge. Vakama, Takua, Nuhrii, and all the other Ta-Matoran stood behind; the four exiting Matoran were now on their own.

As if by instinct, one of the guards up at Jaller's castle of a house pulled the lever to Ta-Koro's bridge—thus making the bridge gradually descend into the lava bit by bit. By the time the bridge was completely buried in fire, Jaller and his guards had already passed through Ta-Koro's exit.

No longer were they in Ta-Koro; now they were in Ta-Wahi. With nobody to protect them from harm, the four Matoran had to rely solely on their instincts, wits, and ingenuity if they wished to survive.

As was expected of somebody of his stature, Jaller showed no fear upon his yellow Hau. How was he to lead the Ta-Koro guard if he was to prove himself a coward? The guard accepted nothing less than the bravest—so they would never allow a pansy to rule over them. Even with his supposed bravery, Jaller couldn't help but feel slightly afraid of the land before him. Hundreds of trees stood charred, burned by the volcano in which he lived.

However, it wasn't the trees which concerned him; rather was it the simple presence of the Makuta. Many strange creatures lingered within the shadowed forest—the likes of which had yet to be seen by Matoran eyes—and almost all of them were influenced by Makuta. It seemed like everything bad in Mata-Nui could be blamed on Makuta—and everybody would agree. Since he first invaded, the rahi had grown stronger, nights became longer, and chaos reigned supreme.

"Get ready to run," commanded Jaller over his shoulder. "That means you, Kapura."

Kapura snorted in response to his captain's snide behavior.

At that moment, Jaller picked up the pace—letting the others drag behind him. His tiny feet carried him further and further through the dead forest—almost fast enough for a passerby to think he was wearing a Kakama. He made sure not to let go of his trident—a tricky task, even for a Captain.

It wasn't long before Jaller stopped and found the one perfect thing for his plan. Lying before him was a fallen parched log—the likes of which was surrounded by dry, broken branches.

Huffing and puffing behind all the others, Kapura asked, "Why did we stop, Captain?" It was while catching up to the other guards when he tripped over one of the parched sticks, nearly hitting his head on the log as a result.

Stifling a chuckle, Jaller picked up the sticks surrounding him. "I'm gonna see if I can use these sticks to trap a rahi." Before he had the chance to use the sticks to his advantage, Jaller caught sight of something—or someone—with a bright, colorful pelt lingering through the gloomy forest.

"Captain," one of the anonymous guards began, seeing what Jaller had seen. "What is that?"

"I have no idea," Jaller murmured. "All I know is that I should have brought my disk with me!"

"I'll go, Captain." It was Kapura—of all Matoran! "I may not be the fastest Matoran around, but I sure am the stealthiest!"

"Are you sure?" Jaller placed a hand upon the wise Ta-Matoran's shoulder. "Think about what you're doing now."

In response to his captain's faithlessness, Kapura snapped, "I _have _thought about what I'm doing! I know I can do this, Captain."

_You can be a stubborn one at times, _Jaller wanted to tell his guard—but instead sufficed to say, "Okay. Go for it."

The other three Matoran—Kapura included—could hardly believe that had just happened. _He actually let me do it!_ a silent voice cried within Kapura's head. "Thank you, Captain!" And with those words, he headed off to the foreign animal.

"Are you sure that was the right thing to do?" one of the other guards wondered.

Jaller sighed and replied, "I don't know."

While slow-moving, Kapura proved very light on his feet. The creature before him didn't even flinch at the sound of his footsteps—which was a good thing for him.

As Kapura gradually drew closer and closer to the beast, he grew a better understanding of its shape. Standing on four legs, this creature held hair on its head and tail. A strange horn protruded from the animal's head—the likes of which held a light on its tip.

Keeping his trident tight in hand, Kapura drew closer and closer. He relied on his mask of strength to help him at this one moment. All he needed was his strength—and he was sure to slay the beast. He would need it here now more than ever.

A few more steps and he found himself standing right behind the rahi. It was at that moment when he noticed how this animal was made from organic material—rather than protodermis. It was as if the creature's skin had been crafted from plants.

A few more steps and he caught sight of a tattoo on the creature's flank—a tattoo of a lyre. _What? Why is that there?_ wondered Kapura. _Does it represent what this animal is?_

After his few minutes of silence, the creature's ear suddenly twitched. "Is somebody there?" it wondered though a female voice.

In both fear and desperation, Kapura tried hiding behind a tree—but was not quick enough. As a result, the red Matoran's figure slipped right into the creature's eye, tripping on his own feet as he did.

Feeling surprised and slightly alarmed, the animal asked through a suspicious tone, "Who are you?"

_I'm doomed!_ Kapura realized, freezing in place. His hand went limp, making his pitchfork hit the dusty ground.

"Hello?" The organic rahi stared at the Matoran, perplexed by his silence.

_It's not killing me!_ thought Kapura, feeling hope spread into his thoughts. _But can it understand me?_ Kapura blinked once before bringing himself up on his feet. "You are a rahi?"

"Rahi?" the beast wondered, wrinkling her nose. "I am a unicorn—a pony!"

"Pony?" asked Kapura, "How come I've never seen you around here, pony?"

Letting out a snort, the pony replied, "First of all, my name is Lyra. Secondly—I'm lost. Where am I?"

"You're in Ta-Wahi," stated Kapura. "Where did you come from?"

Lyra let out a sigh and let her ears droop before she replied, "I'm a resident of Ponyville. But—truth be told—I'm not like all the other ponies. They sit on their legs; I sit on my rear. They lap up their drinks; I sip my water through a straw. Heck, I don't even like using my magic; most of the time I forget I even have it."

"I went out in search of some other ponies like me when I got tangled in a swamp. Giant bug creatures took me away from the swamp, up high through the sky, and onto an island surrounded by silver water and infested with giant spiders. I wanted to get out, but the only way was through a tunnel in the ocean. So I swam through the water, travelled up the tunnel, and wound up here."

"I then found myself in a gassy, dark area—where a big monster yelled at me and transported me here." She paused before continuing, "You know all the rest. I must have told a majority of this story at least three times now!" She sighed and paused once more.

Kapura stood in awe upon hearing this brightly-colored pony's story. _She has been through Mata Nui and back!_ he noted. _But exactly where all did she go? And what is this—magic she told me about? Is she magical?_

As the thought lingered within his head, Kapura heard as Jaller called from the distance, "Did you kill it yet?"

Those words made her eyes dilate and her ears twitch. "_Kill _it?" hissed Lyra. Fumigating, she pressed her nose up against Kapura's mask when she growled, "You were going to kill me?"

"Well—well," Kapura couldn't lie—not to this pony. He sighed before admitting, "Okay, yes; technically I was supposed to, but—"

"But what?" snapped Lyra, nearly tipping the Matoran off his feet as she pushed herself even closer to him.

"You're not a rahi." Kapura couldn't have been calmer. There he stood into this irate pony's eyes—and all he could do was stare back with a serene touch in his eyes. "But now I know better."

"Kapura!" Jaller shouted once again. "I'm coming over there."

"Run," hissed Kapura.

"Run?" asked Lyra, her heart leaping.

"Yes!" His voice raised. "Run!"

And with that, the cyan unicorn went on her way—trotting off out of the woods. It was while doing so when she noticed a beach out in the east. _I'll stop there, _she thought, her breath growing heavy as she left Kapura's field of view.

Upon catching up to Kapura, his mask turning slightly orange, Jaller shouted at his guard, "What was _that_ all about?"

An innocent look on his face, Kapura asked, "What do you mean?"

"You know what I mean!" Jaller snapped. "Why did you let that rahi go? You almost had it!"

"Sorry!" apologized Kapura, "It slipped through my fingers."

"You said you had this one, Kapura." The captain sighed, struggling to brush away the thought of his guard failing him. "Let's just—I don't know—finish setting up that trap."

Kapura sighed, then nodded. "Okay."


	5. Canisters

As the pony ran further and further from danger, she felt as the grip of Makuta lost its hold on her. Before too long, she completely escaped from the dark forest, finding herself standing on a calm beach.

The squawks of seagulls and the rush of salty water brushing in her ears calmed Lyra down. "This is nice," she thought, taking a seat on the sand. _After all, I could use some time to think about what the heck just happened to me._

Lyra stared up at the dark purple sky, witnessing as six little canisters started falling closer and closer to the shore. _What is that?_ she thought with squinted eyes. Part of her wanted to believe the pellet-shaped objects were raindrops—but she knew better. _Are they shooting stars? _Such a thought almost made her want to make a wish.

Even the closest one to her must have been a whole mile away. With a splash, the pellet nearest to her collided with the water. Lyra flinched upon witnessing this unusual occurrence. It was almost enough to pick her off her rear and make her swim toward the capsule.

Such an idea became no more when she saw the capsule pop up through the water's surface and start floating. Using her sensitive pony ears, she detected the sound of grinding and machine whirring. _What is it doing?_ she wondered, growing more and more anxious by the second. With a little examination, she realized the capsule was coming right for the beach.

She was a pony of many experiences, but never before had she seen anything like this. _Is that thing alive?_ she felt like asking somepony. _What's it made out of? Why is it here?_ She repeated these words in her head as the little capsule continued coming closer.

Like the patient, can-do pony she was, Lyra sat in wait for what was to come. She had nothing else to do, after all. All she could do was sit down and watch the capsule—all the while hoping the mess she had just interfered with back in the jungle wouldn't become any real issue heading her way. She had the capsule to watch, the orange sky to gaze upon, the crashing waves to listen to, the beachy breeze to smell. _I've never seen anything like this in Equestria! _she realized. _It's so beautiful here! _Just like that, Lyra could feel her worries melting away. It was as if she had found the perfect place to go whenever she had a rough day.

At long last, the capsule approached the sandy shore and anchored itself to the ground. It was as if an alien had just come to invade the beach; the futuristic, modern gloss on its metal skin was enough to convince Lyra of that. Six yellow lights blinked on and off as Lyra finally picked herself up, struggling slightly in the process.

Now on all fours, she walked over to the side of the capsule. While curious, she was also more confused now than she had ever been in her entire life. Nervously, she raised a hoof and knocked on the capsule, asking, "Hello?" all the while—but to no avail.

In the midst of her confusion, a strange, hissing sound suddenly vibrated within her ears. _Uh oh,_ she thought, _I think it's gonna—!_

_Boom!_ cried the capsule, literally blowing its own top off. Altogether, thirty-three red, orange, and black pieces came flying out of the capsule's maw.

Without any time to cover her ears, Lyra heard as the sound of ringing swam into her ears. In an attempt to find out if she could still hear, Lyra let out a scream—only to hear as it drowned out with the ringing in her ears.

_This has _got _to be the worst day of my life._ She felt like whining to somepony—as if that would have helped—but she had nobody to run to. She felt infuriated, red, hot, horrified by what was to happen; each emotion she let out through a grunt.

She came here for something different. Lyra never really expected to run into Mata Nui, but anywhere different—at the time—seemed better than Ponyville. But after getting pulled through swamps, grassy fields, and hellish forests, Lyra wished nothing more than to run back home, to fall right into Equestria's warm, open arms.

Ringing ears folding over her head, she opened her eyes just a crack—then flicked them wide open and witnessed something unbelievable. Without her help, without her intention, the little pieces started moving toward each other—as if attracted by a magnetic force.

A robotic hand—the likes of which appeared very similar to Kapura's—started crawling through the sand. Lyra may as well have had a spider crawling down her back. All the stress from her day seemed to bottle up to that one moment. As a result, she lost control of her tongue and screeched, "Can somebody tell me what in Celestia's name is going on?" The urge to run away slowly crawled up into her mind as she stood by, a victim of creation.

Almost as if the pieces were magically attracted to each other, they started shifting over to a single spot on the beach. A pair of feet, hands, and even the hilt of a sword travelled over to this spot. Each piece left behind its own track in the sand. Once all the gears, rods, and body parts moved over to one designated location, they stopped moving.

Scratching her head, Lyra asked out loud, "Am I supposed to do something here?" She half-expected an answer—but received nothing in response to her question. Sighing through her nose, she sauntered over to the little pile of pieces. It was then when she witnessed two red feet sticking out from the pile—as if calling out to her. _This thing has hands and feet, _she realized. _Does that mean this thing is a person who has been sliced up into a bunch of pieces? _As these thoughts bounced around and about in her head, Lyra looked back down at the feet._ Help us! _they seemed to say.

_You know what?_ thought Lyra. _I'm gonna do it. I'm gonna fix you with my own elbow grease! _

Starting with the feet, Lyra led herself up to what looked like limbs. Simply peering at these legs made her notice a ball-and-joint connection between the legs and feet. Using her hooves to keep the leg steady, Lyra slowly and carefully lowered an orange leg into one of the feet. With time and patience, both appendages came together with a sharp, _Click!_

_Perfect!_ she thought. _But where do I go after I get the other leg in place? Is there a torso I'm supposed to connect this to? _It seemed like a logical question to ask—but where in this pile of thirty-three pieces would she possibly find a torso?

Was the torso small? Did it look like her own? Or was it the biggest piece of the bunch? In the end, the torso was the biggest and heaviest out of all the pieces; it gave Lyra back pain just carrying it!

While struggling to herald the massive brick over to the legs, the creative unicorn wondered, _If I can barely hold this thing up on my hooves, how is—whatever this thing is going to be—supposed to hold it up on those two legs?_ Four legs were more than two; Lyra was certain of that.

_Maybe I'm just really weak, _she thought with a sigh. _Maybe I need Bon Bon to help me. _Even the silent utterance of that pony's name made Lyra feel desperately homesick. _Maybe if Bon Bon were here, I wouldn't be having such a rough day._ Why in Equestria had she not let Bon Bon come with her?

_Why won't these legs go in? _she wondered whilst tinkering with the balls on the tips of the legs. Her ear twitched as her eye suddenly drifted over to an almost square-shaped piece within the pile. It was then when she noticed a plus-shaped hole near the top of the piece —the likes of which matched the shape of a hole on the bottom of the torso.

A gasp escaped her when she thought, _That's it!_And with that, she set the torso piece on the ground, picked up two of the square pieces, and stuck them on the sides of the bottom of the torso. _Whew, _she thought. _Now for the torso. _Though she didn't look forward to having to pick up, she managed to pull the hunk of metal off the ground and set it on top of the two legs—which both clicked flawlessly with the square pieces. "Success!"

"Could you not yell so loud?" a mystery voice growled.

At that, Lyra flinched, growing suddenly afraid. Unsure of the source of such a voice, Lyra froze before doing anything else. "Who said that?" asked she, her eyes wide open in surprise. "Who's there?"

After a small pause, the same voice responded, "I'm down here. I think I'm buried."

"Buried?" _I don't remember seeing anybody buried, _she noted. _Are they buried underneath all those pieces?_ Hoping to find out, the cyan pony cautiously turned over to the pile of pieces and started brushing them out of the way. "Tell me when I find you!"

"You already have."

The words echoing within her ears, Lyra flinched and caught sight of a head-shaped piece. How she hadn't noticed it earlier was beyond her understanding. The pink eyes of this head blinked, making Lyra shiver. "Do you know what this is all about?" she said, a hint of impatience sitting behind her words. "Why are there a bunch of pieces everywhere? Who are you? Where did that—that capsule come from?"

"Well, uh—" The head wanted to give the pony a legitimate answer, but—in all honesty—he hadn't any idea what to tell Lyra. He truly had no idea who he was, where he came from, or what his purpose in life was. "I—I don't know," he admitted. "I just don't know."

"What do you mean you don't know?" wondered Lyra, baffled by the head's response. Taking her anger out on the head, she continued, "Do you at least know your name?"

The head needed a moment to think the question through. What was his name? For some reason, the word _Tahu_ seemed to flare within his mind. Silently did he repeat the name to himself before responding, "I think my name is Tahu."

Wrinkling her nose, Lyra asked, "You think or you know?"

Glowing slightly red, Tahu responded, "I don't know. Just—" He let out a sigh. "Can you just help me? I'm trying to figure out how to assemble myself."

"Assemble yourself?" Lyra looked back at the mess of rods and body parts she had just been trying to piece together. "Am I doing it right?"

Standing up on her rear legs, she used her free hooves to grip Tahu's head and align his eye with the few pieces she had earlier tried to put together.

After giving a moment's thought, Tahu put a smile on his face and confirmed, "Yes!" She may not have made a lot of progress, but Lyra was at least on the right track.

"Whew!" sighed Lyra, feeling as a bead of sweat rolled down her face. "But what should I do now?"

As Lyra set him down in the sand, Tahu began giving her instructions. "There should be a tiny, black rod somewhere in the pile of pieces," he informed. "Once you find it, put it in the plus-shaped hole at the top of my torso."

"Can do." Although she didn't appear so, Lyra was truly amazed how Tahu seemed to know himself inside and out. He came out of the capsule as a newborn—or so it felt to Lyra—yet he already held extensive knowledge of his own anatomy.

As these thoughts drifted within her head, Lyra clutched a tiny rod with her hoof. "I found it!" she announced, trotting up to the torso.

"Good," sighed Tahu. "Now just stick it in the hole at the top."

Lyra did as she was told—loving every second of it. Simply being able to touch this biomechanical creature's body—whilst fitting his pieces in the proper area—made Lyra feel special. With a guide, she loved it; without a guide—she felt like ragequitting.

At last she felt like she had a purpose in life. _And there were five other canisters!_ she realized with glee. _That means more things for me to fix!_ She paused before noticing, _But they're scattered out. Where am I supposed to find them, now?_


	6. Watch Him As He Goes

The rest of that day was nothing more than the simple allegiance of pieces. One piece after another, Tahu's true form gradually grew more and more apparent to the austere unicorn.

With time, she found herself face-to-face with an almost beastly creature.

In his true form, Tahu stood at least three times taller than Kapura. Even if she was to stand up and meet his gaze on her hind legs, Lyra would still prove shorter than him.

_But wait a minute. _"Aren't you missing something?" asked Lyra, staring deep into Tahu's eyes.

"I think so," Tahu sighed. "I'm so exhausted!"

Lyra snorted in disbelief. "You—tired?" Those were the only words to keep her from breaking out laughing. "Says the person who didn't have to go through countless random pieces just to put together a machine nearly twice her size!"

After catching her breath, she continued with a chuckle, "Exhausted, my flank!"

"Well, I don't know," grunted Tahu. "I just feel—heavy: like I can't support my own weight."

That was when it hit Lyra. That was when she realized there was something different about Tahu's face—as opposed to Kapura's. It was as if something had been removed from Tahu's face. Was it vital for him to have this missing piece? Or could he go on without it?

As Lyra thought these things over, Tahu stood by in wait. His own two legs felt like they were going to break if they continued to hold the mass of protodermis above them. The notion of it all made his patience slowly vanish.

The hilt of his sword remained just that: a hilt. There was no blade, no laser, nothing at all; just a mass of empty air. But even with it being just a hilt, why did it feel so empty? Why did Tahu have to put so much stress on his fingers just to make sure it didn't hit the ground? _I should not have to do this._

With the sun on the verge of falling beneath the horizon, finding this one last piece would only become more and more difficult as time progressed.

"Come on," murmured Lyra, "Where is it?" She only grew more frantic as time went on. She used all four of her hooves to search around for it in the sand, but found nothing. She poked into the capsule, but found nothing. She turned the capsule over, but found nothing.

After pushing that heavy load, Lyra needed a moment to breathe. Panting, she glared over at the sun, watching as it waved off its final goodbye for the night. _Shoot._ Her ears folded against her head as she let out a sigh.

Then—as if out of nowhere—a miracle! Drifting within the barely-lit waters of the ocean was what looked like a tipped boat. "Is that it?" she asked Tahu, not even daring to look back at him.

At first Tahu was confused. "Hm?" Squinting his pink eyes, he peered off into the distance—and through Makuta's cloak, he witnessed the last piece to his incomplete body. "That's it!" he cried. "Get it! Quick!"

Her heart leaping into her throat, Lyra flinched, gained some of her composure, and dashed out into the water. The cool liquid embraced her entire body in a matter of seconds, filling her mouth and nose with a horribly salty essence. Water threatened to swamp over the unicorn—to turn her attempts into a disaster. _No!_ she thought with a growl. _I will _not _let a little water get the best of me!_ Keeping this thought in mind, the pony pushed on to this last piece. Much like a dog would do, she started kicking her legs in the pursuit toward Tahu's final piece.

Growling and struggling to hold her breath, she soon found the last piece floating right under her nose. Seizing her opportunity, she swallowed her pride and grabbed the mask with her teeth. It was immediately after doing so when she started kicking herself back.

_Strange,_ she thought while heading back to Tahu. _This piece is neither a body part—nor is it a rod nor gear._ On the contrary, this piece felt somewhat flat and round and more spread-out than the others. But all that she knew from feeling; she knew hardly anything about what this piece looked like.

It wasn't until splashing up to the shore when Lyra finally caught a glimpse at what she had just caught. "I got it," she coughed, spitting the piece out of her mouth. Like the majority of Tahu's body, the piece was red and shiny. However, it also seemed to resemble a face. After taking a moment to observe it, she looked up at Tahu and, panting, asked, "This is what you wanted—right?"

A spark of recognition shone in Tahu's eyes when he nodded and said, "Yes." As that one word filled the air, the biomechanical creature took a knee and bent down to the piece before him. His metal body nearly gave in to the weight as his knee touched the sandy ground, his fingers bristling under the final piece to his unfinished body. While wet, this last piece was just what he was looking for.

"What is that?" wondered Lyra, her mane soaking wet.

"It's my mask," replied Tahu, his tone warmer than usual. "This is what we've been trying to find."

"Are you sure?" _What am I saying?_ she thought, somewhat ashamed of herself. _If this isn't it, that means I might have to go and risk my life just to find one missing piece. _She dreaded such a thought. Just thinking about it made her want to roll over and bury her face in the wet sand.

But Tahu wasn't listening; Lyra may as well been made of thin air.

Everything seemed to happen within that one second. The scorching, yet comforting feel of flame permeated from the mask through Tahu's body. It was as if somebody had wrapped him up in a warm blanket. The mask's coming in contact with his face summoned a great round of strength and energy—which rapidly spread into his body. Had he any blood, it would have been rushing with pure adrenaline.

No longer did he feel heavy, unable to hold himself up; simply standing was no longer a chore. And while it still held some weight to it, the hilt in his hand no longer held a burden on his fingers.

Lyra wasn't for sure, but Tahu seemed to glow a heavier shade of color than before. Every little color on his body appeared more vibrant and luminous in the pony's eyes. But she didn't mention anything of it. She merely stood by and let Tahu enjoy his newfound strength. _Glad I could help._

Without warning, Tahu's hilt started glowing a bright orange color. A sea of embers seemed to reside within the hilt—before suddenly summoning a lick of flame.

Feeling the fire as it came a millimeter from her hoof, Lyra released a gasp and took a step back. "Be careful with that thing, Tahu!"

Tahu merely chuckled at the pony's caution toward the heat.

"A flame sword!" he exclaimed, admiring its graceful tongue and elegant hilt. A simple swing of his arm brought forth an arc of flame—the likes of which flew toward and sizzled against the ocean. "It's nothing but steam:" chuckled Tahu, "hot air—as they say."

As Lyra stood by, transfixed by his strength, she wondered, "So—what are you gonna do now?'

With a sigh, Tahu responded, "I don't know."

It was at that moment when he shot a look toward a volcano in the distance. He witnessed its cone-like shape, imagined the unbearable temperatures emanating from the crater on top. A blurry haze seemed to accompany the volcano's only impurity. He could see home right in the volcano itself.

_It's amazing,_ he thought. _I must go there—just to see what it is._

"What are you looking at?" asked Lyra, breaking her new friend out of his trance.

Nearly flinching at the sound of her words, Tahu flicked his gaze downward to Lyra.

The little pony, confused, stared into his eyes when she asked once again, "What are you looking at?"

Slightly startled, Tahu cleared his throat, shook his head, and responded, "Um—I just—" He wasn't sure what to say. How was he to say this—while at the same time avoiding any awkwardness between him and Lyra?

Choking on his words, the nervous robot finally admitted, "That mountain—it's calling out to me."

Raising an eyebrow, Lyra turned her head toward this so-called mountain. "You mean the volcano?" she asked while looking back up at Tahu.

After giving quick nod of his head, Tahu headed out toward the volcano. "It spits fire—just like me," he murmured. "It's like my natural habitat. I feel like I was born there—but I've never been in it before, have I?"

"If you wanna go in there, be my guest," stated Lyra, unsure whether or not that would have been a wise choice. _I just had somebody near there try to kill me,_ she remembered. _But Tahu—I guess he should be able to take them down without a problem!_

As these thoughts echoed against the walls of her head, Tahu started trailing off toward the Makuta-infested forest—his feet leaving deep prints within the moist sand.

Lyra blinked. _He's really gonna go for it!_

Almost as if she had heard her thoughts, Tahu paused and took a look over his shoulder. The metallic creature, while innocent and practically a tourist in this world, looked ready to kill. Had Lyra not known any better, she would have been frightened by such a sight—to the point of evacuating.

In spite of this, Lyra couldn't help but smile over at Tahu. _Thank you,_ his pink eyes seemed to say. Only a heartbeat passed when he continued on his way toward the forest.

_That's one down,_ thought Lyra with a sleepy grin, _and five more to go._

While anxious to build five more biomechanical beings, Lyra couldn't help but release a huge yawn. Her hoof covering her gaping maw, the sleepy pony asked herself, _Now—where am I going to find a place to sleep?_

She pondered the thought for a moment.

_I probably shouldn't sleep by the ocean unless I want to get soaked. _She glanced at the dead forest and shuddered. _There's _no_ way I'm going back in there—that's for sure!_ "Hmm."

Little did Lyra know, a red-and-blue Matoran had been wandering around and about the whole day. The whole time he had slowly walked behind Lyra—until he finally tripped and went tumbling head-over-heels toward Lyra—before finally hitting his head to her leg.

Feeling a slightly sharp pain course up her limb, Lyra yowled, "Hey! What are—?" only to stop when she realized who had just run into her. "Kapura?" wondered she, taking notice of the Matoran's red body.

With a grunt, the Matoran picked himself up on his feet, revealing his light blue mask. _That's not Kapura,_ Lyra realized. _His face shape is the same, but not the color._ Was this Kapura's brother?

With a flinch, the Matoran's eyes shot up toward the pony. He took a heartbeat to stare into her eyes—before jumping in surprise.

Pulling out a disk and slowly walking backward, the blue-masked Matoran stammered, "A—a rahi!"

_Oh no—not this again! _Resisting the urge to growl, Lyra asked, "What?"

In retaliation to Lyra's growl, the blue-faced Matoran used all his strength to hurtle his disk at her.

With barely enough time to retaliate, Lyra ducked out of the way—the Matoran's disk only an inch above her horn. Without a target, the disk went flying off into the distance—before splashing into the water.

Her spine tingling, Lyra recovered from her duck and took a look up at the Matoran. An uncontrollable temper got the better of her when she screamed, "You little brat!" Her eyes red with fury, Lyra swiftly turned around so that her hind legs faced him.

It was then when the Matoran's mask made contact with the unicorn's rear hooves. _Smack!_ Such an impact sent the Matoran flying toward the forest hiding behind the beach. _Boom!_

It felt good to finally let her rage out. But—as the pony knew—rage was not something to be proud of. As a result of making such a realization, she paused right where she was. _What just happened?_ thought Lyra, her anger suddenly vanishing.

Feeling a bit sorry for the Matoran, she galloped over to where he had just landed. She witnessed as ferns and leaves of dark green covered the Matoran up, blanketing him in their natural beauty. A moan escaped his mouth—so at least he was still alive, just out cold. _He'll be alright, I guess._

Her conscience cleared, Lyra found herself distracted by the leaves covering the Matoran's face. _The plants here are the same, _she noted before taking a look up at the sky. _And so are the sky and clouds. The people and animals here might be different, but everything else is the same._

Sitting beside the Matoran's head was what looked like a giant face. Lyra watched as it stared into her eyes—asking her to take a look inside its mystery. Its mouth was shaped in a perfect circle—just big enough for the unconscious Matoran to squeeze through.

_What is that?_ wondered Lyra, almost completely forgetting about the Matoran and plants. _Oh, me and my short attention span—I swear._


	7. Unknown Evils

_Sleep—my little pony—sleep._

The sound of snoring filled the room, bouncing throughout the walls of Fluttershy's little home. Everything from the outside seemed to lose its way before meeting the pony's ears. Apart from the snoring, all Fluttershy could hear was a deep, frightening voice—the likes of which came from a mystery source.

With fluttering, shining eyes, the yellow pegasus—confused and curious—pried herself from sleep. _Where am I? _she wondered, feeling darkness cloud around her. Out of nowhere, a ray of light stretched through a crack—revealing where she was. _Oh_, she realized. A familiar Discord lamp. A couch big enough for all her friends. _I'm home. But—then why is it so dark?_

_ Sleep, my Fluttershy,_ an eerie voice called out. The presence of such a voice proved enough to make the pony flinch.

Rather than follow its command, Fluttershy immediately picked herself up on her hooves, her heart leaping into her throat. With blood frozen, she started hyperventilating when she asked, "Wh-who are you?"

No response came.

"Where are you?" she continued.

From the shadows did he creep. An unimpressed, almost angry look showed upon the rabbit's face.

"Angel!" cried Fluttershy, rushing over to her pet. Her feet touched his when she murmured, "Are you okay? You didn't trip and hurt yourself in there, did you?"

It was at that moment when she noticed something out of the ordinary about the bunny. Usually Angel held a white coat over his whole body—the likes of which stood out from the rest of Fluttershy's pets. It was pure white—without a crevice or imperfection to be seen. As he currently stood, however, Angel was totally covered up in a dark-gray pelt.

"Angel?" whispered Fluttershy, bringing her hoof up to the rabbit's belly. "What's wrong?" Upon touching Angel's chest, Fluttershy's pupils shrank.

"You're ice cold!" she exclaimed. "And your tummy—it doesn't even feel furry!"

In the midst of the pony's confusion, Angel opened his mouth and did what Fluttershy never thought possible from rabbit like him: he spoke. "I am that which you have sworn to protect."

In response to such a surprise, Fluttershy leapt back ten meters. The only thing keeping her away was her set of wings—which beat like those of a hummingbird. _That cannot be Angel, _she thought in denial. "Wh-what are you?" she stammered.

A small smile formed upon the rabbit's face when he answered, "I am nothing."

Tears began streaming from the pony's eyes as she found herself at a loss for words. "Angel—I—I—" She sniffled. "What are you doing, Angel?"

An even wider smile appeared on the rabbit's face as a great flash of light blossomed. At the same time, a high-pitched ring sounded in Fluttershy's ears. But from where it came, she knew not.

In response to such a bright light, Fluttershy shielded her tear-encased eyes with her hooves. All the while Fluttershy silently told herself, _This isn't happening—this isn't happening, _over and over and over.

In the midst of her fear and anguish, she pulled her hooves away from her eyes—and immediately caught sight of the strange dark stone. "Oh!" she sighed in relief. "My rock!"

Her lips turned up as she jubilantly trotted over to the heavenly darkness. By spontaneous action, she kissed the frowning rock's head. _My little darling,_ she thought, wishing the rock could read her mind. _I'm so glad all that's—_

But just when Fluttershy felt like she had finally found peace, a squeal vibrated into her ears. Letting out a gasp, she turned around—staying close to the stone—and caught sight of her rabbit friend. She noticed as he stood beneath the rim of her home's entrance door.

"Angel!" she cried, allowing his rock-like texture to fill her vision. "What are you doing, sweetie?"

Not a single word escaped from the bunny's mouth.

It as at that moment—seeing as Angel stood by himself—when Fluttershy realized she was now outside. The realization made her step away from the rock. "How did I get out here?" she asked out loud.

Angel then closed his eyes and inhaled. The very act of doing so gave him a look of authority.

Shaking uncontrollably, Fluttershy whispered to herself, "What is he doing?" Without warning, the river in front of her house dissipated—leaving behind a dry channel of dirt. Fluttershy's pupils shrank at such a sight. She gulped. _No—he's destroying my house, and there is nothing Ican do._

_Unless— _She tried thinking of an idea, beating her hoof against her head.

_Of course!_ It had worked countless times against other animals; why wouldn't it have worked there?

_Here goes, _thought Fluttershy, taking a deep breath. _I'm going to give him _the stare_._

Every animal in Equestria knew of the dreaded _stare_. No creature—except maybe Discord—could resist the power of her eyeballs. It would work on Angel—no doubt about it. It had worked on him before; she saw no reason why it wouldn't work here.

_It's time for me to brave, _she told herself, legs wobbling with the thought of confronting the evil bunny. _I'll be back,_ she wanted to tell the rock as she left it behind.

Stepping over the dry crevice in front of her house, Fluttershy came a mere meter from her pet. She took a deep breath before commanding, "Angel! You stop what you're doing right this instant!"

Despite owner's wishes, Angel did nothing to stop the chaos surrounding him. One of Fluttershy's trees caught fire, the sun started shrinking, and the grass slowly withered away. He didn't even try to look at Fluttershy.

_I refuse to believe my Angel has turned evil!_ thought Fluttershy, fighting back tears. _There is only one way to cure him._

Keeping the thought in mind, the yellow pony looked up at the rabbit. By coincidence, Angel turned his head toward his master—making their eyes lock, giving Fluttershy her chance.

Her brow scrunching up, her teeth grinding together, the brave pegasus' piercing eyes shot straight into the bunny's stare. With the sheer intensity of fire, she peered into Angel's eyes. _I will save you, my dear._

It had been a whole three seconds, and Angel hadn't shown any sign of faltering. Usually it only took one or two seconds for the pegasus' stare to bring out the worst feelings in its victims—so what was happening? _What is going on?_ wondered Fluttershy, pulling her eyes away from Angel's. _How is it not working?_

Fear blanketing her entire being, she took a peek back into the bunny's eyes—only to sense as a horrid, unfamiliar feeling spread deep into her bones. _What is this? _she wondered, paralyzed and unable to ask Angel with her tongue.

It was as if somebody had drowned her in a pool of blood—leaving her to suffocate in its red gaze. She may as well have been lying under a tree. _What's happening to me?_

That was when it dawned on her. _Angel—he—he has his own stare!_ And from what Fluttershy could tell, this stare was much stronger than her own. It took over her in a matter of seconds. Dizzy and barely conscious, she finally gave in to the power of Angel's eyes.

There she stood—in the vicinity of a dark, eerie milieu—as Angel's stare took over her thoughts.

_Fluttershy_, the voice called out once more.

_No!_ she cried. _I'm not listening to you, Angel! I don't care that you're my pet. You're—you're evil!_ She choked on her words, weeping when she thought, _I'm sorry._

As she lie unconscious in the real world, the demonizing voice confessed, _I am not who you think I am._

_ What do you mean?_ wondered Fluttershy whilst sniffling.

_I am the stone that you have been protecting._

_No—that's impossible!_

Her ears perked as she came back to reality. With a quick blink of her eyes, Fluttershy exited the dark realm and caught sight of Angel once again. There stood the bunny—the same look in his eyes—as he continued to peer into Fluttershy's mind.

_Not this time!_ she insisted, determination taking over her thoughts. With all four hooves planted firmly in the ground, she closed her eyes and pulled away from Angel—freeing herself at last.

Violently shaking her head, the pegasus listened as the voice of Angel called out, _Come to me, Fluttershy!_ Realizing the voice existed only within her own head, Fluttershy retreated from Angel—leaving her pet alone with the house.

_Foolish pony,_ the rabbit thought.

Not used to sprinting, Fluttershy found herself panting by the time she made it to the rock. Crouching down, she hid behind it and asked, "What are we going to do?"

As those words flew from the pony's lips, Angel suddenly spawned fire into his paws—the very action of which led Fluttershy to confusion and mental disarray. _Am I losing my mind?_

As the bunny drew the flames closer and closer to his former home, he cast a cringe-inducing, mischievous smirk.

"Fluttershy!" he exclaimed through a feminine voice.

Wrinkling her nose, Fluttershy wondered, "Huh?"


	8. Pried From Sleep

"Fluttershy!"

The yellow pony made her response in the form of a scream—pulling her head up from her hooves all the while. It was as if somebody had caught her in a net and pulled her out of an ocean of misery. _What just happened?_ she asked herself, realizing she was back in her house.

Her whole body trembling, she took a look to her right and saw Angel—witnessing as he peacefully slept at the corner of the room, plugs shoved in his long bunny ears.

A knock at the door startled her.

"Fluttershy!" It was Twilight. "Are you awake?" she called from the other side of the door.

Almost as if by magic, Fluttershy ceased trembling. Without a word, she picked herself up on her hooves and slowly sauntered up to her front door.

Standing behind her was the black rock. It watched Fluttershy's every last move as it stood beside her bed.

Letting out a yawn, the pegasus opened her front door—finding Twilight at the other side. "Good morning, Twilight," she murmured, her voice sounding very sleepy.

"Morning, Fluttershy," Twilight responded, a perky smile on her face. Not even giving her friend a chance to respond, Twilight continued, "I hope I'm not interrupting anything. I just wanted to talk to you about your—" She wrinkled her nose and took a look behind Fluttershy's shoulder. "Your rock."

A pause came between them before Twilight remembered, "Oh—and one of your chickens escaped again."

Blinking the sleep out of her eyes, Fluttershy let a sigh escape from her mouth when she asked, "Well, what do you want to know about my rock?" It was as if she hadn't heard Twilight's last statement.

Her ears flattening against her head, Twilight murmured, "I just feel like—"

Fluttershy raised an eyebrow. _Go on._

"I don't know if—" Twilight sighed. "How should I say this without upsetting you?" After all, the last thing anypony wanted to do was upset Fluttershy. "I don't feel like that rock is good for you."

Obviously confused, Fluttershy blinked.

But before she could have responded, Twilight explained, "I mean—I just think there's something—" She choked on her words once again, "—something unusual about that rock."

A pause slipped between them before Twilight asked, "How exactly did you say you came by it?"

Taking a look over her shoulder and at the black stone, Fluttershy responded, "Well—I don't really remember even saying where I got it."

Impatience causing her blood to draw to a slight boil, Twilight rolled her eyes when she continued, "The question still stands: where did you find it?"

"I—" In confusion, the pegasus shot a look over at Twilight, staring into her deep, purple eyes. "I really—oh, don't be mad—I can't remember!"

Fluttershy was such a sweet creature—but at that moment, Twilight couldn't help but feel absolute aggravation toward her. _You forgot?_ she silently screeched. "You don't know where you got it?"

Fluttershy gave a curt nod. _Please don't be angry,_ she wanted to say, but lacked the courage for the words to pass her mouth.

A stern—yet determined—look on her face, Twilight began, "Well, if you don't know where you got it, could you at least tell me why you're keeping it?"

It was at that moment when Twilight stepped into the house, shooting a glance over at the rock as she did so.

Closing the door behind her friend, Fluttershy responded with a sigh, "I just—I feel so much safer whenever I'm near it." A light smile showed on her face when she continued, "I know that sounds kind of silly, but—that's just how I feel. It's like a teddy bear you sleep with every night. As long as you have it with you, you'll be fine."

Barely even heeding Fluttershy's words, Twilight pulled herself closer to the rock. Her nose barely an inch from it, she wondered through a murmur, "I wonder if there's a specific name for this type of rock."

"Teridax."

Her ear twitching, Twilight faced Fluttershy when she asked, "What?"

"The rock's name is Teridax."

_How does she know this?_ wondered Twilight as she faced the rock once again.

Menacing eyes and a frowning mouth pointed into Twilight's eyes, making her feel the same dread she had felt the day before. Something about this rock—something almost personal—seemed to dwell within its core, seeping into the minds of whomever came too close.

Simply by looking at her friend, Fluttershy could tell Twilight was confused. "What's wrong?" she asked.

A pause drew before Twilight replied, "At the risk of something stupid, I think there's something—something spiritual about this rock."

"What do you mean?"

Twilight stood up straight and looked Fluttershy right in the eye. "I think this rock is alive."

_I knew it!_ thought Fluttershy, letting out a gasp.

Witnessing the pegasus' false awe, Twilight continued, "It's almost like this rock is a living, breathing, thinking thing. And the most amazing part about it: it's just a stone!"

She began pacing Fluttershy's floors. "How is it that something made out of solid rock can be alive? It doesn't even move! Then again, plants don't move—and they're considered living creatures. Could it be possible that all rocks are living creatures? If so—"

In the midst of her rambling, Twilight felt as Fluttershy stuffed a hoof in her mouth. "I think I get it," she muttered, pulling her hoof away from Twilight.

"Sorry," the unicorn chuckled, feeling a blush cross her face.

_How she loves to get carried away,_ thought Fluttershy. Tossing the thought aside, she asked her friend, "So why are you here, again?"

"Because," Twilight began, touching her horn to the stone. "I think Princess Celestia would be very interested to hear about this—this Teridax you've acquired."

Twilight's reflection showing in her light blue eyes, Fluttershy whispered, "You're not going to take it away from me—are you?"

Seeing her obvious dilemma, Twilight hushed her friend when she explained, "Oh no, no, no, no, no. You can come with me—with Teridax—to see the princess."

With a single blink, the reflection in the yellow pony's eyes went away. "Oh," she murmured, feeling a little better. "Okay then. Let's get going!"

"Wait," said Twilight, pressing a hoof against Fluttershy's chest. "Shouldn't you get somebody to babysit them?"

"Oh, no," explained Fluttershy. "I don't need a babysitter for them. They'll do just fine on their own!"

"Uh—Fluttershy?"

"Yes, Twilight?"

"I don't think all your animals can do _just fine_ on their own. There's gotta be at least a hundred of them." The unicorn continued, "Plus—if your animals _could_ take care of themselves, why did you ask Spike to babysit Angel last week?"

Her face glowing red like an apple, Fluttershy stammered, "Well—I, uh—I guess—I—" She choked on her own words, uncertain of how she was to express herself. Feeling as if her tongue had just forgotten how to move, Fluttershy sighed in surrender.

_I don't know_, she wanted to tell Twilight. _I guess I'm just dumb is all._ Did her friends view her as a dumb pony? As one without any real idea of how the world worked? Fluttershy—listening to such thoughts as they bounced about in her head—looked down at her front hooves in regret.

Then she flicked her gaze upward and gasped. "Wait a minute!"

Surprised by her friend's sudden outburst, Twilight gave a minute jump into the air when she exclaimed, "Gah! What?"

More awake than she had been all day, Fluttershy asked, "Did you say one of my chickens snuck out of the coop?"

"Yes." Twilight raised an eyebrow. "I said that about five minutes ago."

"Oh no, oh no! This isn't good!" Panic taking over her thoughts, the yellow pony rushed outside, pushing Twilight out of her way. "Which way did it go?"

Cries of _bwuk bwuk_ emanated from her coop—the likes of which looked like somebody had recently tried to break into it.

Feeling sorry for her friend, Twilight admitted, "I don't know which way your chicken went. All I know is that it's gone."

In contempt and fear, Fluttershy turned her head toward Twilight—revealing a troubled, furious stare. "It's not gone," she whispered. "It won't be gone until I say it is."

Was that a tear forming in her eye?

Her blood frozen, Twilight violently shook her head. Purple eyes rolling in her head, she muttered, "Um, Fluttershy—maybe we're getting just a teensy-tiny bit out of hand; would you agree?"

Standing nose-to-nose with Twilight, Fluttershy growled "No—I would _not_ agree!" Her feet stomping against the ground, she marched into her home and continued, "We are not going to any princess until we find my lost chicken. Then we can take the train to Canterlot!"

_Oh boy,_ thought Twilight. _If this keeps up, we'll never get to the princess any time soon._

"Come on, Angel," Twilight heard Fluttershy command. "We're leaving." The purple unicorn stood outside as Fluttershy came ever-closer to the exit. She yawned as Fluttershy slammed the door behind her.

"Let's get going," the pegasus commanded.

"Oh, sure," responded Twilight, still stuck in her gape. Upon recovering from such a big yawn, she opened her eyes, surprised to find the _Teridax_ rock sitting upon Fluttershy's flank.

It behaved almost like it was glued to her—which only escalated Twilight's suspicions of its spiritual nature. Twilight shook her head once again before following her friend. Dragging just behind Fluttershy, she stared down at the stone and stated, "I thought you were getting Angel."

"Hm?" asked Fluttershy, her ear twitching. A scarlet glare flashed in her eyes.

"You know that's your rock—right?"

In response to Twilight's question, the haughty pegasus snorted, "Oh, what's the difference?"

Such words were almost enough to draw Twilight to a complete halt. "Well, Angel's a bunny, and—" She decided to stop herself right there.

_Careful, Twilight,_ an inner voice warned, _You don't want to drive Fluttershy away, do you?_ Realizing she needed the pegasus for the task at hand, Twilight held her tongue. But even so, she couldn't help but think, _Why is she acting like this so suddenly? I know Fluttershy has a bunch of animals to care for and that she loves them all very much—but does she have to lose her temper with me?_

She let out a sigh before realizing, "Where are you taking me, anyway?"

"To the town," replied Fluttershy. "Someone there _has _to know where the chicken went!"

It didn't take long before Fluttershy and Twilight made it to the Ponyville market place. Elation swept over the ponies' heads at such a sight.

However, before either pony could receive answers of the whereabouts of the chicken, a yellow filly jumped in the way. "Hi, Twilight! Howdy, Fluttershy!"

"Applebloom!" exclaimed Twilight, a smile on her face. "Whatcha up to?"

Letting out a sigh, Applebloom responded, "I've been spending the whole past hour lookin' for your chicken, Fluttershy!"

Her ears perked in slight surprise, the pegasus asked, "You knew?"

"Yup!"

Fluttershy didn't know whether to feel absolutely infuriated or pleased with this filly. Yes, she was making an effort to find the lost chicken—but she had made absolutely no effort to simply tell Fluttershy about the chicken's absence. Her shyness was the only thing keeping her from snapping at Applebloom.

Despite Fluttershy's silence, Applejack's sister could tell something was peeving Fluttershy. Her ears flattening against her head, Applebloom wondered, "What's wrong?"

"N-nothing," Fluttershy immediately replied. "Just—nothing."

Silence came between the three ponies before a small _growl_ filled their ears. Giggling in response to such a noise, Applebloom put a hoof over her belly when she explained, "Haven't had breakfast just yet."

"Oh," muttered Twilight, "Neither have I."

A small pause slipped in before Fluttershy admitted, "I just woke up."

"Not to worry, everypony," Twilight chimed. "I have all the bits we need."

"Oh boy, oh boy!" cried Applebloom, ready to sink her teeth into a carrot pancake. "Thanks, Twi!"

A smile on her face, Twilight responded, "You're welcome. Come on, let's go get something to eat."


	9. Just A Little Closer

"That'll be fourteen bits, ma'am!" said the clerk.

A hospitable smile on her face, Twilight placed the money on the pony's table and responded, "Here you go!" And with that, Twilight, Fluttershy, and Applebloom received their food.

Upon making their way to their table, the three ponies found themselves sitting within a place of beautiful smells and friendly faces. Sitting before Twilight, Fluttershy, and Applebloom—respectably—was a bowl of flower salad, kettle soup, and a plate of carrot pancakes.

Licking her lips in pure hunger, Applebloom cheered, "Well—let's get eatin'!"

"Yes," Twilight agreed with a smile. "Let's." And with that, she activated her horn's magic and telekinetically lifted her fork from the table. Using her magic, she gradually started consuming the salad before her.

Witnessing as Fluttershy lapped up her soup, Twilight gave a twitch of her ears when she realized, "Oh yes—Fluttershy!"

Soup dripping off her lips, the startled pegasus flinched before asking, "Yes?"

A look of sympathy showing on her face, Twilight wondered, "How do you think people feel whenever you give them _the stare_?"

Such words caused Fluttershy to lose her appetite completely. "Do you mean—?"

"What kind of emotions do you inflict whenever you give somebody _the stare_?" explained Twilight.

Fluttershy blinked in response to such a sudden question. The soup before her seemed to vanish when she snorted, "I know it's not a good feeling—that's for sure."

At that point, Applebloom was stuffing her face with the carrot pancakes. Sticky syrup mixed into the hyper horse's bloodstream. A storm of great energy and hyperactivity was brewing right under their noses. Perhaps they should have given her something less sugary.

They couldn't blame her; she was tired of eating nothing but apples at home. Sometimes she regretted being part of the Apple heritage.

Even as Applebloom engorged herself like the little filly she was, Fluttershy continued, "I need to confess something to you."

Raising an eyebrow, Twilight wondered, "Confess what?"

Another pause drew between the two before Fluttershy continued. "I had a dream last night. A dream about Angel and Teridax. And in the middle of it, Angel gave me _the stare_."

"But it was just a dream," Twilight stated. "Right?"

"I want to believe it was just a dream," Fluttershy sighed. "But it felt so real. I saw Angel look into my eyes and give me the stare."

Twilight listened with perked interest, pushing her nearly-finished salad aside. _Go on_, she seemed to say.

"Anyway," Fluttershy continued. "I just—I felt horrible. I felt like something was taking over me—like I had no control over my body. I'm sorry—I don't know how else to say it. I've never been a pony of many words."

Those words ringing within her ears, Twilight noticed Applebloom had just finished eating her pancakes. "That was delicious!" she squealed, licking her syrup-covered lips clean. Taking a look up at Twilight, Applebloom continued, "How was your—oh—you're still eating."

Giggling at Applebloom's surprise, Twilight replied, "Yeah—Fluttershy and I were just talking."

"Oh." Applebloom bit her bottom lip. "Oh yeah! I still gotta find your chicken!" Without hesitation, the enthusiastic filly pushed herself away from the table and plopped herself on her feet. "Well, I guess I better be headin' off. Thanks for the pancakes, Twi!" And with that, Applebloom went trotting off into the distance.

A smile on her face, Twilight shot a look toward Fluttershy—taking notice of the pegasus' worried eyes. Ears flattening against her head, Twilight sighed, "Fluttershy—you don't need to be afraid of Angel. And besides—the idea of a bunny giving you _the stare_ and taking over you is just plain preposterous!" She sighed once more before continuing, "And in any case, why exactly did you think your Teridax rock was Angel?"

"I didn't _think_ it was Angel!" growled Fluttershy. "I know what I saw. I decided to take Teridax with me instead of Angel because—well, you know why."

Through a wave of utter confusion, Twilight sneered, "I know why—what? How would I know why? And what do you mean you _know_ what you saw?"

In response to the perplexed unicorn's questions, Fluttershy did something Twilight had never, ever seen her do: she started grinding her teeth. Such an action released hideous sounds—the likes of which caused Twilight to cover her ears in disgust.

Through her covered ears, she heard as Fluttershy growled, "Isn't it obvious, Twilight? Angel doesn't love me anymore." Within seconds, the grinding was replaced with sobbing. "He—he—n-never loved me!"

Pushing her soup out of the way—nearly knocking it off the table as she did so—Fluttershy buried her face into her front legs, pulling her head down to the table all the while. Despite what the surrounding ponies may have thought of it, the distressed pegasus murmured between sobs, "He—he doesn't care about me. He just wants to use me. He just sees me as somebody he can live off of!"

In the midst of her weeping, she lifted her head from her legs—revealing her red, moist eyes. It was a horrid sight for Twilight to witness. Nobody—not even the cruelest of creatures—would want to see Fluttershy weep. As a result, Twilight couldn't help but cringe upon witnessing the tears in her friend's eyes.

Hoping to simmer Fluttershy down, far from her dilemma, Twilight placed a hoof on the pegasus' shoulder when she murmured, "Fluttershy—Angel loves you with all his heart."

"Then why doesn't he act like it?" sniffled Fluttershy.

Twilight—being the bookworm she was—wasn't sure how to respond to her question. She'd read plenty of psychology books to understand emotions, but the most she could seem to squeeze out was, "He just doesn't know how to express himself, Fluttershy."

Pointing to the rock as it sat beside her, the weeping pegasus explained, "And in my dream, Teridax spoke to me."

Wrinkling her nose, Twilight sneered, "_Spoke_ to you?" _Perhaps this whole supernatural thing is a reality after all._

Nodding her head, Fluttershy continued, "And Teridax—he told me that he would protect me from anything, including Angel!" Tears welled from the blue eyes once again before the yellow pony buried her face in her legs.

At that point, Twilight was out of options. The only thing she could do was pat Fluttershy's back whilst simultaneously murmuring, "There, there."

It was while calming her friend down when the unicorn heard a tiny "Psst!" ravage into her ear. Her ear tickling, Twilight turned her head toward the source, noticing one of the waitresses was standing right beside her.

In the midst of Fluttershy's agony, the waitress asked through a whisper, "Would you like me to take your food to go?"

"Yes please," sighed Twilight. It was at that moment when she noticed something peculiar about the waitress.

She was an earth pony with a peach pelt and a cutie mark shaped like a vine of green grapes. Her hair was red like a red velvet cake.

Before the pony had a chance to turn tail and find a box for the two customers, Twilight wondered, "Hey—have I seen you before?"

"Oh, probably not," the pony replied. "My name is Vineyin; I just moved into Ponyville from Canterlot."

"Really?" asked Twilight, raising an eyebrow. "Because I used to live in Canterlot—and I've _never_ seen you there!"

A bead of sweat rolled down Vineyin's face when she stammered, "Oh—well, I—I like to move to other places is all."

Unconvinced by the pony's words, Twilight shot a look into Vineyin's eyes—only to find herself pulling away in mere seconds. It was as if staring at Vineyin had caused acid to leak from the corners of her eyes. _What just happened?_ she wondered.

Noticing Twilight's sudden rebuttal, Vineyin scooted a little closer in when she asked, "What's the matter Twilight?"

Vineyin's eyes—while pretty—held some kind of evil aura in them. Instead of being white like all other ponies' eyes, Vineyin held a shade of blue and green covering the vast majority of her eyes. It would have seemed a gorgeous sight to most ponies—but not to Twilight, for some reason.

That was when she realized another oddity to this pony. "How did you know my name?"

The pony seemed to gasp at the hearing of those words. "I—I'm just good at remembering names! And besides—who hasn't heard of you?"

"What?" asked Twilight.

Almost as if she hadn't heard a single word of the conversation, Fluttershy poked Twilight's shoulder when she wondered, "Can we start going to Canterlot, now?"

Surprised by Fluttershy's newfound desire to leave, Twilight blinked before responding, "Just a moment."

A scowl plastering over her face, Vineyin whispered, "Your friend over there seems a little rude, doesn't she?"

Nearly letting out a gasp, Twilight corrected, "No—not really. If anything, she's the complete opposite of what I would call _rude_."

Vineyin shook her head and retorted, "She's exactly would _I_ would call rude. Think about it; she interrupted our conversation."

"Oh, give her a break!" Twilight snapped. "She's been through a lot lately. Heck, I'm surprised she _hasn't_ been acting all that bad today." _Well, actually, _Twilight corrected herself, _she has been acting a little grouchy today. But I can kinda understand that._

Breaking herself out of her thoughts, Twilight looked up at Vineyin and commanded, "Just please—get our boxes so we can leave."

Blowing the red hair out of her eyes, the waitress pony sighed, "Fine," before leaving Twilight and Fluttershy to their business.

"Are you feeling any better?" asked the concerned friend.

Even as a nearby train blew its horn, Fluttershy found herself forced to respond, "A little." She sighed before she took hearing of the train once again.

It was the train they were to ride during their trip to Canterlot. Fluttershy witnessed as ponies of all cultures exited the train—bringing with them the many auras of their homelands.

As the smells of Canterlot, Saddle Arabia, and many other origins flooded her nose, the pegasus nearly flinched when Twilight said, "Well—let's get going!" Shaken by those words, Fluttershy hesitantly picked herself up on her feet and started following Twilight.

Feeling the Teridax stone still sitting upon her rump, she wondered what all the other ponies must have thought of her._ They probably think I'm a freak! After all, who in Equestria goes around carrying a dark rock with her?_

In the midst of her dreadful thoughts, the distressed pegasus gasped when a ghastly voice growled, _Don't you ever think—not for a single second—that the other ponies think of you any less than they think of themselves! You are a wonderful pony, Fluttershy. You are more beautiful than Rarity, more strong than Rainbow Dash, more smart than Twilight, more fun than Pinkie Pie, more austere than Applejack._

They were sudden words, but enough to make Fluttershy's heart leap. Almost feeling the need to shed a tear in response to those words, Fluttershy replied, _Thank you._

"Fluttershy!" called Twilight's voice.

Startled, Fluttershy shot a look up—witnessing as her unicorn friend stood below the train's entrance. "Yes, Twilight?" she asked through a murmur.

"You're holding up the line!" Twilight explained.

"I am?" It was at that moment when Fluttershy took a look behind her. Behind her spot stood a horde of ponies—shouting things like, "Get a move-on!" and "What's the holdup?" Not an ounce of consideration seemed to show in anypony's eyes.

Feeling as if she had just irritated everybody in Equestria, Fluttershy flattened her ears against her head. Her voice barely above a whisper, she apologized, "S-sorry!" Knowing that one word wasn't anywhere near enough to make up for her foolishness, she made her way up to the train—following Twilight all the while.

A nervous smile plastered over her face, Twilight let her friend sit down first; she followed immediately after. She watched as Fluttershy set her Teridax stone down on the table. As ponies from around the world boarded the train, the pegasus stared—tranquilized—at the stone before her.

Without any idea of the thoughts running through her friend's head, Twilight let out a sigh and thought, _Oh Fluttershy—you're a great friend, but you scare me sometimes!_

What unknown evils did this stone bring? What kind of terror did it impose on Equestria?


	10. Enter the Volcano

Hidden beneath a layer of leaves lied Lyra—who slept peacefully beneath their cover. It wasn't anything like sleeping in a bed; leaves constantly scratched her with their rough leaves and tickled her with their soft tips.

As she slept beneath the plants' cover, the cyan unicorn felt one of the leaves tickling her nose. In response to such an uncomfortable sensation, Lyra's nose twitched as she lied in sleep. It twitched once more. Unable to control her nose, the unicorn pulled an intake of air and sneezed—which pulled her out of her sleep.

Rubbing her nose, Lyra groaned and pushed the plant out of her face. _How long have I been asleep?_ she wondered, shaking her head. Judging by how badly her red eyes stung, she hadn't been asleep very long.

The light was clearly portrayed amongst the plants—making a green aura surround Lyra as she sat beneath all the vegetation. Having been suddenly driven away from her sleep, she rubbed her nose once more before picking herself up on her hooves.

Her head shooting above a fort of leaves, she witnessed as the strong sunlight appeared before her eyes. Letting out a yawn, the awakened unicorn thought, _Day two on this strange new world. Where will I go today?_ Was she to recede back into the vegetation or pursue toward the beach? Her answer came when she took sight of a blue biomechanical creature amongst the beach. Sitting in the water next to this creature was what looked like a metal boat. "Help! Help!" the creature cried.

_Oh great!_ Lyra thought with a sigh. _More people who think I'm a monster!_

However, much to her surprise, the familiar red-and-blue creature walked out from the vegetation and toward the blue person. "What's wrong?" he wondered.

"My village has been attacked!"

_Oh,_ thought Lyra, feeling the red flushing out of her face. Relieved, the little pony watched as the two biomechanical creatures continued conversing. She lost all interest in what they were taking about; she just wanted to sneak past them and move on with her life.

Keeping this thought in mind, she kept a close eye on the two creatures—eagerly awaiting her golden opportunity.

It took some patience—but after much waiting, she witnessed as the two biomechanical creatures clambered up into the boat resting behind them. Within seconds, they both started sailing off into the vast ocean.

_Finally!_ Lyra thought with a sigh. Relief washing over her, she emerged from all the plants at last. At last she found herself in the midst of the beach's space and openness—the likes of which stretch out for what looked like a whole mile. With the sun no longer on the verge of setting, she could see this easily. _This place is so big! I've never seen anywhere like this in Equestria!_

In the midst of her thoughts, the pony started wandering within the beach. _There's more sand here than there is in Saddle Arabia!_ she thought with a snicker.

She didn't realize it, but Lyra was walking straight back into the hellish landscape from which she came. _I miss Bon Bon,_ she thought, looking down at her hooves. _She's the only pony in Equestria who ever showed me any affection or laughter. Well—Pinkie Pie showed me a whole bunch of laughter, but not like Bon Bon._

Such thoughts were nearly enough to bring the unicorn to tears. _What if I never see her again? _she sniffled. _What if—what if she dies not knowing what happened to me? What if—?_

She stopped. _Wait a minute. How did I get here? _Feeling as sweat dripped from her brow, Lyra looked here and there—but not one single trace of the beach showed in her eyes. She was back in the volcanic landscape; only this time, she stood closer to the volcano than ever. The heat from this fiery mountain reached out to the pony, making her feel like falling over in defeat.

In addition to being trapped in a place she cared not for, the pony had no idea where to turn back around. The heat didn't help her situation, either—as it made her feel lightheaded and thirsty. She may as well have been stranded on a desert.

It was while trying to gain some composure when she heard voices coming from the inside of the volcano. _Are there...people in that volcano? _As absurd as it seemed, Lyra went with her theory. Shaking her head, the unicorn realized, _If the people in there see me, they'll think I'm some kind of monster! _What was she to do? She couldn't go forward and she couldn't go back.

_Is this dark forest going to be my home from now on?_ Simply thinking about that possibility led her to shivering.

The weight of the world seemed to press down on the pony's shoulders; meanwhile, she noticed as the ground started shaking uncontrollably. _What's going on?_ Lyra asked, struggling to stand on all four hooves.

It was while asking herself this question when the cyan unicorn witnessed a giant crab-like creature walking out of a doorway in the volcano.

_Wait a minute,_ she thought while squinting. _Since when do doorways exist in volcanoes? _Regardless of such thoughts, Lyra felt an overwhelming urge to run away rise within her throat. But her legs were stiff—frozen in place from her own terror. If she couldn't run, she could hide; but where was she to go? She would have hidden underneath a bush of vegetation—had one existed.

Without anywhere else to go, the pony stood her ground and clenched her eyes shut—worrisomely awaiting her doom. Within seconds, she heard the pitter-patter of crab legs tapping against the hard, charred ground. Such a sound only grew louder and louder as time went on.

Had she any fingers—which she desperately wanted—Lyra would have crossed them. _Please don't hurt me!_ she silently begged. Just the thought of getting into someone's squabbles made her close her eyes tight.

It didn't take long for the sound of footsteps to dramatically slow down. Such a noise lifted a heavy weight from Lyra's chest. Confused, she opened an eye and took a good look forward—surprised at who she found. "You!" she cried, her eyelids both shooting up in surprise.

"So—we meet again." Sitting upon the crab was Kapura—who came off as almost camouflaged in contrast to the volcanic colors behind him. "Lyra, right?" he asked, lifting himself off the crab.

The baffled unicorn responded with a nod of her head. After letting a pause of silence fill the air, she stammered, "Wh-what is that thing?"

"What thing?" wondered Kapura, acting as if the crustacean wasn't even there.

Wanting to knock the Matoran's head back into place, Lyra pointed at the beast with her hoof and exclaimed, "_That _thing!"

Turning his head toward the crab, Kapura chuckled, "Oh—that's my friend's ussal crab."

Her gaze fixed on this creature, Lyra murmured, "Ussal crab?"

Interrupting her train of thought, the red biomechanical creature hissed, "And would you mind telling me what you're doing out here in the open?"

Suddenly nervous, Lyra let out a chuckle before responding, "I—uh—didn't see where I was going and I bumped back here."

At such awkwardly-placed words, Kapura snorted and replied, "And you really expect me to believe that tale?"

At that point, Lyra had had enough. "Don't you _dare_ assume that I'm lying to you!" she snapped, her head hanging low over Kapura's. "Let's make this clear, little one: I will not have _anybody _telling me I'm a liar." Bending down even further, Lyra ground her teeth and growled, "Is that clear?"

_Maybe I should have killed her!_ thought Kapura, feeling the urge to retreat. With some hesitation, he let a gulp slide down his throat before he replied, "S-sorry—please don't hurt me!"

Seeing the fear in the puny Matoran's eyes, Lyra pulled herself away from Kapura and let out a sigh. "No," she began, unable to meet his gaze, "I'm sorry."

Slightly relieved, Kapura walked over to his crab—which surprisingly hadn't moved a muscle. _Does it even know what just happened? _he wondered. Regardless of such thoughts, Kapura pointed out, "Anyway—what do you think you're doing here? If my people catch you out here, they'll kill you!"

Her patience wearing thin once again, Lyra responded, "Like I said earlier—I got lost."

"Oh—right!" Kapura muttered. "Where exactly did you say you were going?"

A sigh escaped from Lyra's lungs before she answered, "I don't know where I'm going. Home, I guess—but I still don't know how I'm going to get back."

"Oh," the Ta-Matoran murmured. After a moment of silence came to pass, Kapura pointed out, "You know—there might actually be a way to get you back home."

Her ears twitching, Lyra flinched when she asked, "Say what?" With perked interest, Lyra brought herself up to his stout body—pushing her nose up against the top of his mask all the while. "I can see her again?" She wanted to look happy—almost pleading—to Kapura, but her eyes held a look in them which seemed to ask, _Why didn't you tell me earlier?_

"Yes," Kapura replied with a nod, "but it's very risky."

_Huh? _"How so?" asked Lyra, her hopes slightly dashed. "What's your plan?"

A sigh escaped from the Matoran before he explained, "I'm gonna try to smuggle you into Onu-Koro."

Almost gasping at those words, Lyra thought, _Is he serious? _Feeling somewhat uneasy, the cyan pony wondered, "And how are you going to do that?" A million other questions sat in her head, but she had time for only one.

Without hesitation, Kapura grabbed what looked like a lasso and wrapped it around Lyra's neck."You're going to be my rahi," he explained.

"I am?" Such a thought made Lyra wrinkle her nose. She took a look down at the rope tied around her neck. "Oh—I get it," she sighed. _I just wish he would stop treating me like I'm an animal—when I'm so much more than that!_

Hopping back onto his ussal crab, Kapura said, "Now then—let's head on our way to Onu-Koro." And with that, he ordered his crab to turn around back home.

Lyra had taken less than two steps toward the volcano when she asked, "Hey Kapura?"

"Yes?" the Ta-Matoran replied.

"Why do your people hate me so much?"

"Well," he began with a sigh. "It is not that they hate you. The only reason why they want you dead is because they think you are a wild rahi beast. If you stay with me, then they will think otherwise. The thing about us Matoran is that we have been tortured by rahi for years; my Captain even says they are becoming stronger."

Taking Kapura's words with a grain of salt, Lyra wondered, "Do _you_ think they're getting stronger?"

Had he been walking—and not sitting on a crab—he would have halted right then and there. "I do not know, Lyra," he admitted. "I just do not know."

"One more question," the pony began, resisting the urge to pant like a dog. "How in Equestria do you and your people survive in this heat?"

"Shh!" Kapura hissed. "We're entering Ta-Koro and I do _not_ want anybody finding out that I have a talking rahi with me."

"Oh," whispered Lyra. "Got it!" And with that, she locked her lips shut and followed behind Kapura and her crab. At the same time, she thought, _How am I going to survive down here? I'm going to suffer from heatstroke if I stay here too long!_

Regardless of such thoughts, she held herself close to Kapura—hoping not to lose herself in the horrid temperature. It didn't take long for her to find herself crossing paths with other Ta-Matoran—each of whom seemed to share concerned murmurs whenever she passed them by. _It's great to know that nobody notices me,_ she thought while rolling her eyes. _At least none of Kapura's hunting friends are here to see me._

Just being here made Lyra's eyesight blur—made her head spin. Her vision impaired her so badly, Lyra wondered While she managed to keep herself close to Kapura and his crab, she swerved the whole way there.

As she and Kapura continued pushing through the village of Ta-Koro, Lyra noticed as the temperature gradually started decreasing. _Good thing, too,_ she thought with a sigh. _If I sweat any more, I'll start dehydrating._

"We're almost there," murmured Kapura. "Just a few more steps."

_Oh, wow,_ Lyra panted. She could hear her heart racing—leaping up into her throat with every beat. _Just a few more._ She repeated those words in her head as she came closer and closer to sweet coolness.

Before her eyes came an aura of darkness—the likes of which brought down a wave of relief on her. Feeling as if her eyeballs had been stung with the heat, she rubbed her eyes with her foreleg. By the time she had finished doing so, she found herself standing within a deep, dark cave.

"Come on," commanded Kapura. "Just a few more and we'll be safe."

_Okay,_ Lyra felt tempted to reply. Sure enough, she found herself in a reasonably warm place. At the same time, she heard Kapura say, "You're all good!"

The sound of those words vibrating within her ears, Lyra flicked her eyes wide open. A mix of sweat and tears covered her eyes as she found herself in the midst of the coolest place she had crossed paths with in what felt like months. "Whew!" she sighed, shaking the sweat from her hair. "I feel like a wet dog!"

Kapura found himself slightly confused at the pony's words, but shook the thoughts out of his head. "Well then," he began with a sigh, "I believe it is time for us to depart."

Her ears twitching in response to those words, Lyra turned to the Ta-Matoran when she asked, "But—where do I go from here?"

After taking a deep breath, he explained, "Head down this tunnel until you find a dimly-lit village. Once there, sneak past the Onu-Matoran guards and see if Whenua has any answers to your question. He's the leader of Onu-Koro."

His crab turning around, Kapura kept his eyes locked on Lyra when he cried, "I wish you the best of luck, Lyra!" And with that, he strode off back into Ta-Koro.


End file.
